FrictionSquared
by briteskies
Summary: Unable to leave the house because of rather unusual case of mistaken identity Kurogane and Fai are forced to deal with life on this new world in a way they had never quite imagined. KuroFai
1. I Don't Really Sing

_So no one can say I don't have one: **Disclaimer: **I, galenhiril, do not own Tsubasa or the characters therein. This is strictly written for fun and the spread of said fun among the fandom. Thank you for your time. Please enjoy!_

_With that out of the way, I would like to say hello and welcome to this fanfic. The idea for this was inspired by a prompt at a fanfiction community on livejournal known as 30kisses. The theme of said inspiration was "Superstar," as this story progresses, hopefully you will be able to... see how I worked that in. ;) Other than that, I hope you enjoy!_

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"They're still out there," Sakura panted, leaning against the front door she had just practically slammed shut, her arms loaded with bags from the market and her bangs plastered to her forehead. 

"Still?" a single black eyebrow arched in slight curiosity, but he did not so much as raise his eyes to look at her. He seemed to be rather content and comfortable there reading his book on the couch. "It's been four days. They have to leave sometime," he stated calmly, not even losing his place.

She could only smile at him and nod in eager agreement. Kurogane was right. They would have to leave sometime, and then Fai and Kurogane would be free to leave the house again like normal people. But she had a sinking feeling that there had been different people out there today than the usual ones, and that "sometime" might not really be any time soon.

People in this world seemed to be awfully persistent, but she didn't quite have the heart to tell him that just yet. She and Kurogane never talked about much, but she knew him well enough to know that being trapped in the house all the time was already making him a bit cranky. She didn't want to have to give him even more bad news today.

So instead, she smiled again and pushed herself away from the door before kicking off her shoes.

"Is Syaoran-kun home yet?" she gave a look back over her shoulder on her way into the kitchen, nearly tripping on the edge of the carpet.

"No," was all he answered, giving no shrug or shake of his head nor any further details on where he might be. She supposed it was because he was too busy reading.

The apartment was tiny. Only two bedrooms, a tiny living room and a room barely definable as a kitchen. But it was all that they could afford in this world. Especially with Sakura and Syaoran being the only two able to work.

Everything seemed to be painted in some atrocious yellow colour, and all the faucets had a drip. All the windows seemed to be coated in an immovable film of grease and dust, and the dull grey carpet was fraying and coming up in places. The floorboard in one of the bedrooms was loose and squeaked at the lightest touch and the light bulb in the bathroom flickered no matter how many times Kurogane tried to screw it in properly. The heater barely worked either, which was going to be a problem with all the news reports saying autumn was almost over.

She wouldn't say it, but she was hoping they would be out of this world by the time winter came.

With a tired sigh, she shoved her bags of groceries onto the tiny counter and began to put them away, humming bits of the song stuck in her head to herself. She only stopped her humming when Fai entered the small room to help her.

"Hi Fai-san!" she turned and greeted him happily although the melody of the song was still running through her head; low, smooth notes as the ghost of a melodic voice echoed through her mind.

She grinned wide once again and told him, "I heard another one of your songs today. I didn't know Fai-san had such a pretty voice."

To this, Fai could only offer a chuckle and a shake of his head as he placed a jar of blackberry jam and a bottle of milk into the refrigerator, but he did not press her for further information either. He'd like to just pretend he hadn't heard her, actually. But that was difficult when she was standing there smiling, looking at him with eyes that insisted they had more to say.

Fai again smiled, pausing to make sure the refrigerator door was going to stay shut. "I don't really sing, Sakura-chan. In fact, I've never been very good at singing at all…."

She too smiled and give a small shrug. "Well, you know what I mean…."

He nodded. He supposed he did know what she meant. But he didn't like to think about it. "Have you found out anything else about your feather?" he made his best attempt to change the subject.

"No. Nothing yet," she gave a disgruntled sigh and leaned against the counter, still clutching a loaf of bread. "Syaoran-kun and I were supposed to go to the library once he got off work to see if we could learn some things. But he isn't home yet. Wasn't he supposed to get off early?"

"No," Fai shook his head, "It's only Tuesday. Syaoran-kun only gets off early on Wednesdays."

"Oh," her green eyes fell to the peeling linoleum floor, "yeah…"

"Why don't you go and rest up a bit," he says with another smile, ruffling his long fingers through her strawberry blonde hair. "You've had a long day, Sakura-chan. I'll call you when dinner is ready."

Without argument, she disappeared gracefully into her own tiny room down the short hallway, the cheep wooden door clicking behind her only once she jiggled the handle just right.

He adored her, but he was glad for her not to be there right then. For her to be able to see the frustration on his face. For her to not continue regaling information to him about a life that he did not have and to be reminded that he couldn't even so much as look out the window these days. Not without a dozen flashes of cameras going off at the mere glimpse of his face.

Despite how he acted around them most of the time, Fai was not genuinely fond of being the center of public attention. It made it far too easy for people to blame things on him if they were made aware of his presence, and he was quite sure that he had far enough blame and attention shoved upon him to last him several lifetimes.

But what he liked even less was the feeling of being utterly trapped, with no where to escape.

With a long sigh, he set to work preparing their dinner. He would make enough for four, but Syaoran's portion would go directly into the refrigerator so he could heat it up when he got home. Thinking of this, Fai made sure to put a little extra portion in there for him as well as make sure it was prepared how he knew Syaoran liked it.

It couldn't be easy for someone so young to be working two jobs.

But Syaoran never complained about it. In fact, he insisted that he do so.

Chopping carrots, a sly grin spread across his face. The realization that it had been almost a whole afternoon since he had even seen Kurogane came to mind with the association of hard, pointy object in his hand.

Kurogane and weapons, that is.

Their apartment was tiny, certainly, but Fai had spent most of the day locked up in his room flipping though old, dusty newspapers for no other reason than to elevate boredom. Even Fai liked time to himself now and again.

"Kuro-non!?" he hollered over his shoulder.

Chop. Chop.

No answer.

"Oh Kuuuuuuuuuuro-non!?"

In the next room, Kurogane's eyebrow twitched once.

He should have known better than to be blessed with a day where Fai behaved himself for a full 24-hour period. Fai _was_ still breathing after all. In fact, he realized he should be ecstatic for having been granted such a long period of peace and quiet. Undoubtedly, it was a new record.

Or perhaps, he should be concerned…

Maybe the mage wasn't feeling well.

Poke.

No. The mage was feeling just fine. Though he wouldn't once Kurogane smacked him upside the head a few times.

"Do you mind?" he growled, eyes narrowed on that cheesy grin.

"Can you open this?" Fai pressed a jar of some sort of red sauce under Kurogane's nose, blocking his view of the book he'd been reading.

"You're not a wimp. You open it."

"Pleeeeeease Kuro-mew. I can't get it."

Annoyed, but hopeful it would get him out of his hair faster, he swiped the jar from Fai's hand and untwisted the top effortlessly.

A typical, wide, cheesy Fai-grin spread across his face and he cooed, "Kuro-pon is always so strong!" before skipping back into the kitchen.

A rather "good riddance" humpf followed after the mage, and Kurogane turned back to his book, trying not to ponder over the ever-present question of whether Fai actually made an effort to drive him towards insanity, or if it just came naturally to him. He was quite sure he'd never know anyway, so it was just easier to leave it alone.

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_If any of you have read any of my previous works, you'll notice that this is a very short chapter for me! But don't you worry, there is still plenty to come._

_P.S. I am a KuroFai fangirl for life. Please know that... I'm going there with this ;) Feel free to take that as either a warning or reassurance.  
_

_P.P.S I ;heart; reviews!!!!!!!!!!  
_


	2. No Cause For Alarm

The squeaky floorboard gave him away every time. He could be perfectly silent, tiptoeing into the room, doing his best not to disturb the two men sleeping on the floor amidst the pile of blankets. They couldn't afford beds for any of them, and now that it was getting colder here, they all just shared the pile of blankets in the center of the room. It wasn't like they hadn't all snuggled up to each other before.

He hoped Sakura was warm enough at night.

Creeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!

He froze in mind step and kept his eyes focused on the center of the room for any sign that he might have disturbed them. He wasn't sure why he even bothered. He knew good and well neither of them would move. They knew it was him. And they both had heard it.

He slipped out of his work clothes and into the soft pants and slightly oversized t-shirt Fai had left out for him and then slipped silently in beside them.

"Nuyhm," Fai made some sort of sleepy murmur, "Welcome home Syaoran-kun." Even though the darkness he could see the soft smile on the man's lips.

But Syaoran said nothing, only bore himself deeper under the covers, doing his best not to bump against the slender blonde mage. Though he would admit that the thought of bumping against Fai was a little more welcoming than bumping against Kurogane. He admired the man, that was certain, but Syaoran was quite sure that cuddles in the middle of the night, accidental or otherwise, were a little too far into his personal bubble. But Fai? Fai would just cuddle right back.

He wondered if Fai ever worried about bumping against Kurogane in the middle of the night, too. Usually he was the one who slept in the center. But then again, Fai never seemed to be cautious of invading Kurogane's space at all, so Syaoran had his doubts.

It was only a few moments until they were all sleeping soundly, only to be waken by the 8:00 a.m. train that passed near their apartment.

Stores in this world carried objects called "alarm clocks," but the train was always on time and Sakura and Syaoran never needed to be up before then, so they had decided to save the money.

Every day, Fai would wake up with the children and make them breakfast and prepare them their bentos to take to their jobs. Today it was sesame rice balls and peanut butter sandwiches cut into little shapes; stars for Syaoran and hearts for Sakura.

Sakura had to be to work earliest, but Syaoran would leave with her and walk her to work.

Fai often wondered what the two of them would talk about on their way. If they ever held hands. If Sakura would ever kiss his cheek before they departed.

One day he hoped such things would happen for them. But right now, he was quite sure that was not the case.

Kurogane usually woke up while Fai was cleaning up the breakfast dishes. Sometimes he would come straight to the kitchen and eat his own portion, and sometimes he would slip into the shower before hand.

Today was a shower-first day.

Fai was busy drying dishes with a towel when Kurogane finally came in. He took his place silently at the table without a hello, good morning, or otherwise. Just the occasional glance at the blonde when Kurogane was quite sure the other was not paying attention.

That was really his favourite time to watch him; when Fai was distracted with something else. He would often get a rather glazed look over his eyes that suggested his mind was somewhere else entirely. If nothing else, Kurogane thought it might mean Fai actually did think about things, which was slightly comforting, because his odd behavior often suggested otherwise.

"So, what would you like to do today, Kuro-tan?" he finally broke their silence as he turned around to lean against the kitchen counter.

"Nothing," the other grumbled and continued to munch on his toast and he came to the conclusions that this world had very delicious blackberry jam.

"Well that isn't any fun," he whined. "You wanna play a game?"

"No."

"Why not? Don't you like games, Kuro-rin?"

"No."

"Yes you do!" he laughed, "Everyone likes games."

"You can do what you like. I don't care," he shrugged and shoved the rest of his toast in his mouth and grabbed for the newspaper on the table, hoping that might deter any further conversation attempts.

"'Friction' Concert Sold Out!" read the headline.

As if it were poisoned, he wadded the paper up and threw it on the floor. He would rather deal with Fai than read _that_ garbage.

Fai only clicked his tongue and shook his head. He had already read the headline. He knew exactly why Kurogane had reacted the way he did. The only reason he hadn't thrown the newspaper away himself was because Syaoran had been looking over it earlier and Fai had gotten distracted by cleaning up before he could properly do so.

"Aren't you the least bit curious, Kuro-tan?" he giggled as he tossed the mangled paper into the trashcan.

"No. Not in the least," Kurogane grumbled with a narrowed look at the slender blonde to warn him not to press any further at the subject. Over the past few days they had come to a silent understanding that this subject was not something that needed to be discussed. He was in no hurry to break it.

"I am," he shrugged as he slid into the chair directly across from the slightly damp ninja and propped his chin up with his hands, "I bet Kurogane is handsome as a musical star."

"I _don't_ sing," Kurogane growled. He was choosing to ignore other parts of his statement.

"Nope, you play a…" blue eyes shifted to the ceiling, hoping the word he was looking for might be floating in the air up there somewhere. It wasn't a word he was familiar with. "Giter?" He finally settled with that one, as he was sure it at least sounded similar.

"No, I don't. I thought I said I didn't want to talk about this."

But Fai only grinned and leaned further in to the table. "Is Kuro-muu shy?" he just giggled.

"I'm not shy, this is just a stupid! That's all. Why should I care about some person's life I don't even know. If I could, I'd punch him in the face and tell him to get those people with the flashy box things out of the damn yard!"

"Cameras," Fai corrected him, happy to have learned a new word in this world.

"I don't care what they are," crimson eyes narrowed again and he stood up from the table and stormed out of the room.

Fai could only laugh quietly to himself as he cleaned off the last of the dishes. Kurogane _was_ shy. He just hated when people found that out about him.

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_Thank you for reading! Part Three coming soon! Please review!_


	3. Spotlight

There in the darkness, with the voices of thousands of eager onlookers screaming in anticipation, he lowered the hood of his sweatshirt for the first time since leaving the house. The air was stifling and smelled strongly of sweat and women's perfume. The stage lights before him pulsed steadily in a dull yellow, the electric buzz of the giant speakers sent a slight static through the air he could actually feel on his skin.

He kept his fingers loosely gripping the edge of his hood, just waiting for someone next to him to look over and see. His hope was that once the show began, he would not have a thing to worry about. No one would be looking at him then. He would just be another face in the crowd. And while he knew he would be wisest to remain hidden until the music began, it was just too damn hot.

A single strum of an electric guitar.

An eruption of screams that shook the floor.

The crash of lights.

And then…. a single spot light.

He thought he had prepared himself for it, but the catch of breath in his throat suggested otherwise. Perhaps it was just the way the light caught his hair, or the strangely confident way he stood that caught him off guard.

No. He was not off guard. Kurogane was never off guard.

But there he was, regardless; center of the stage and looking out over a crowd of faces he would never know with those same blue eyes.

The drums. The guitars. The synthesizing keyboard. They all began in perfect queue and harmony. And then…

That voice.

He was quite certain he had never heard Fai sing before. He was even more certain that he had never had any real desire to. But even still, he could not help but simply stare at the face of the man on stage and wonder if his own Fai were to do so… would he sound anything like the man before him?

Not that Fai was _his_ Fai or anything. He was just the Fai Kurogane happened to know was all.

He had tried to suppress the thought of someone _else_ being on stage as well. But when the single spotlight began dancing around stage once the beat of the music upped its pace, and then one spotlight became four. Five. Ten. He could no longer ignore the fact that "Fai" was not alone up there.

He supposed curiosity caused him to look.

The man dressed in nothing but black leather played a silver guitar with a dragon design running almost the entire length of the instrument, a point Kurogane found strikingly ironic. But while looking at him, he did not fully see _himself_.

Sure, they looked similar. Same hair. Same eyes. But that man was not him. Kurogane scoffed at the thought of ever even comparing himself to the man on stage. They were nothing alike. How could they be? What honour and strength ever came from anything like music?

Though it _was_ good music.

Nihon did not have music such as this. Tomoyo would often sing. Kendappa would play her harp. But there was no instrument that vibrated entire stadiums in Nihon, and there was certainly not anyone he knew of who possessed such a haunting voice as the blonde man before him. If there had been such a thing in Nihon, he certainly would have known.

He was glad to have come alone. Glad to be able to stand and feel the vibrations of the screaming crowds around him, watch the flashing lights change from blue, to red to green before his eyes as he listened to every note strummed through the guitar, every key pounded into the keyboard and every syllable that slipped from the lips of the blonde on stage. Glad to feel all of it and not have to worry about the mage saying something weird, or be worried about something happening to the princess.

The thought soon came to him that just as Kurogane did not see himself in the man on stage, he also did not fully see Fai in the blonde.

_That_ man was calm. Confident. Such words Kurogane certainly would not associate with _his_ Fai. The Fai _he_ knew.

Silver screens above the heads of the crowd projected his face. Covered every moment as he sang into the microphone with his eyes closed. It was only then that Kurogane regretted having come. The realization that he had escaped the confines of the apartment to get away from Fai only to stand and watch his mirror sing was all too suddenly unnerving.

No. He had not come to see _Fai_.

He had come to make sure they had been properly informed. To make sure that they were not keeping themselves trapped uselessly while the children struggled to support them. To make sure that his desperate feeling of utter uselessness was not all for nothing.

He should be happy to know that everything was true. That their case of mistaken identity was something more than just some huge misunderstanding.

But he wasn't happy at all.

The longer he stood there hearing the calm, haunting melody spill from those pale lips, feel the steady beat of each struck chord resonate through him, the more he began to wonder.

How did the two of them meet? Were they friends? Business partners?

How much did the man with the silver guitar actually know about the lead singer?

Did the lead singer get under the other's skin every waking day?

He had never really cared to know anything about any of the other people in any of the other places they had been. He had also been rather convinced until now that if the crazy magician had not been forced into his life by the witch, he'd never have had anything to do with him. At all.

So why were they up on stage at the same time?

How was that possible?

He hated not understanding. His entire life seemed to be full of things he did not understand, and it was about to drive him crazy.

Four songs in, he decided that he could not take any more. Could not take watching either of them a moment longer.

To be safe, he pulled the hood of his sweatshirt back over his head and edged his way out of the row his seat had been in, and down the stairs that cut through the center of the crowd that swayed in unison to the unique melody pulsing through every molecule in the air.

But the hood had not saved him. After all, no matter what world he was from, Fai would always know that face.

He had thought it would be safe to take one last look. One last glimpse of a forward, confident, calm and strong Fai that Kurogane could picture in his mind whenever his own Fai drove him three seconds from going over the edge. Something to give him hope that the mage had the potential in him to be normal.

But the look in those blue eyes was surprisingly readable. The blonde had seen his face, and recognized it the moment Kurogane had looked up. It was obvious by the glance the singer gave to his guitarist, as if to double check he were still there.

Without another moment to spare, Kurogane pushed toward the doors. But in the end, his attempt to flee the stadium without any further complications turned out rather fruitless. He only made it to the stadium's exit doors that would lead him to the hallways before he was intercepted by two large men wearing security uniforms.

"You've been asked to go backstage," one of them said in a way that seemed to leave him very little room to argue.

Kurogane was not typically one to just go along with such demands. In fact, his instincts told him to fight them both then and there and be done with it. But there might be some good to come out of meeting with the others. Perhaps the other Fai was just as cunning and deceitful as his own, maybe he could come up with a way to do something about his problem with the adoring public.

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_ Thank you for reading! Hope you're enjoying this so far!_


	4. One'a These Things Is Not Like The Other

After nearly an hour backstage, Kurogane thought he might understand the reason that his other self didn't mind such a lifestyle.

The full bar in the suite was astounding!

He could still hear the music, though it was distorted, echoed, and mixed with the vague thunder of screaming, stomping crowds. But it was still pleasant.

Every once in a while, someone would poke their head in and ask if he needed anything else. They would always stare a little longer than what he would usually allow, but he supposed, given the circumstances he wouldn't let himself get too worked up over it.

The warm sake helped calm him down anyway.

An hour and a half, and then the walls shook with applause. The music stopped.

The show was over.

Kurogane downed one last, long gulp before setting the bottle down.

The door opened again. No security guard this time. No waitress. No stage manager. No, this time he had a name to place to the face.

"I'd heard rumors of their being a look-alike out there, but I had no idea just how true those rumors were," he said with a smile, tilting his head to the side curiously.

He wore blue from head to toe. Tight, almost plastic looking pants that glittered under the light, and a gauzy button up shirt he had only taken the time to fasten up halfway. His hair was just a touch longer than he was used to seeing. But still, the same silky, pale gold. Still the soft, cream coloured skin. Still the deep, sky blue eyes.

"Tell me," he said with a grin Kurogane had never seen before. He wasn't sure he liked it, but then again, he wasn't sure he didn't. "What is your name, Kuro-ton-mirror-san?"

"My name is Kurogane. Can you ever say it normally?" he snapped at him reflexively.

The other nearly fell over from laughing so hard. Clutching his stomach, doubled over in near pain from it all, he practically cried, "You sound just like him! That is incredible!"

The whole thing was a stupid, horrible idea. What could he have possibly been thinking?

"I should get going now," he said, pushing past the blonde and towards the door until long, slender fingers caught him by the wrist.

"Wait!" he panted through his suppressed laughter. "Please wait. I'm sorry."

He knew he should have left when he had the chance.

"At least stay and have a drink with me," the singer adjusted himself back in a proper standing position and took a deep breath before speaking again. "With those crowds out there, you'll not get very far anyway."

He growled, realizing the blonde was right; he stood no chance in a hallway full of post-adolescent females.

"One drink," he agreed through gritted teeth and reluctantly turned back around.

"Yay!" the other chirped happily and glided off to the bar to fetch them drinks.

His pale fingers still had the remnants of the foam from the cracked-open beers as he handed one to Kurogane with a hauntingly familiar grin.

"So, Kuro-yuu," he beamed, sliding himself onto a posh red leather sofa and kicking his slender legs onto the table. "Do you not like our music?"

Kurogane chose to remain standing. No need to get comfortable for only one beer; the very same beer he took a rather long drink from as a way to avoid having to answer him. He wasn't quite sure what he thought.

"It's fine," he grumbled eventually and noted that this beer tasted much more like fuzzy, bubbly wine than beer like he had been expecting.

"Just fine?" the other twisted his lips into a pout. "You're a pretty tough critic Mirror-tan. I thought everyone liked our music."

"Apparently," he grunted into the narrow mouth of the blue tinted glass bottle before taking another swig.

Half way done, and soon he would be able to leave.

"Why did you come to see the show then, if you do not like our music?" the blonde wondered, plopping the bottle onto the table with a hollow thunk that told Kurogane it was already empty – something he'd be surprised of were he in different company.

"I was curious," he shrugged, but quickly wondered why he felt like he should have offered such information at all. That was his own business. And the slick grin that spread across the others face told him all he needed to know; he shouldn't have said anything.

"Really?" he practically sparkled at the words. "Curious about what, Kuro-non?"

"It's not important," he shrugged and finished the remaining alcoholic… whatever it was, with one more gulp. "Thanks for the drink," he offered half-heartedly and made his way for the door.

But this Fai was fast. Perhaps not as fast as the Fai he was used to having to dodge, but fast none the less.

"You can't seriously be thinking of going out there, silly," he giggled, practically throwing himself between Kurogane and the door. "Or have you already forgotten what is out there?"

"I'll take my chances," he said gruffly and pulled his hood back over his head.

But the other seemed to have no intention of budging.

Crimson eyes narrowed almost immediately, "I _will_ throw you out of my way."

But the singer only grinned devilishly, those blue eyes twinkling with mischief. "Would you stay if I brought Kuro-ton in here?"

"No," he shrugged. He strangely had no desire to meet the other man. He wasn't quite sure why that was.

"Why not?" his lower lip protruded in a pout. "It could be fun! Then we could see how much you _really_ look alike."

"I already know we look alike," he growled.

"Please?" he whined, tilting his head to the side in hopes that by being cute he could dissuade Kurogane's decision. But his eyes still had that glint of mischief that seemed to only make Kurogane want to leave all the sooner. "What else could you have been curious about if not that, Kuro-chuu?"

His eyes narrowed dangerously once more, but before he could bellow out another threat, a knock came at the door.

"Hurry up idiot, there are people waiting for you!" came a disturbingly familiar voice through the other side.

Fai's eyes only seemed to light up more.

"Just a moment Kuro-rin! I'm almost ready!" he practically sang. His grin never left his lips as he bounced back toward the center of the room, knowing Kurogane was not going to be going anywhere with his mirror standing right outside the door.

Without so much of a hint of modesty, Fai's blue plastic pants and gauzy button-up shirt were haphazardly thrown to the floor as he rifled through a closet to find something else to wear.

It wasn't as though he had been trying to look or anything, but the large tattoo on his back was hard to ignore; large black wings splayed across his smooth pale skin shoulder to shoulder; neck to lower back. But it was not a phoenix like Kurogane thought it should be.

No. It was a dragon.

"It's not polite to stare, Kuro-chuu," he giggled, pulling on a fur-lined white jacket.

"I wasn't staring!" he growled. "I was just looking at your tattoo."

The singer seemed to glow again. A soft, thoughtful and very genuine smile spread across his entire face. "Someone very important gave that to me," he confessed.

"Ashura?" Kurogane wondered aloud. He figured it was as good of a guess as any.

But Fai only laughed. "No, silly. Kuro-ai. Why would I ever want to get anything of Ashura's tattooed on me?!"

"Are you ready yet?" another holler came through the door. "I swear to God you're worse than a woman sometimes…."

Sliding a belt through the last loop of his black leather pants, he was finally dressed again. Though Kurogane couldn't not quite define him as "fully" dressed. Not with that jacket of his still wide open, and no shirt beneath it to cover anything at all. And those pants of his left very little to the imagination…

For some reason he was extremely glad all the sudden that his own Fai didn't dress that way. Things like that couldn't be good for the kids to see, after all. He wasn't even sure he was alright seeing it…

"Are you going to come with me Kuro-wan? Or would you like to stay in here for a little longer?" he looked up at him and grinned.

But he had no intention of answering him. He had something else to say. "Why'd you invite me in here, anyway?"

"I was curious," he only shrugged, and before Kurogane could even flinch, the singer leaned up and kissed the tip of his chin. "I will not be long. Just silly meet and greets. If you wait here, I will make sure you get back home safe."

He was gone before Kurogane could deny him. Out the door like a wisp of a shadow.

He was going to need another drink…


	5. For Better Or Worse

It was hard giving directions when he was seeing double of everything. But at least the car ride was smooth.

"Are you _sure_ this is where you live, Kuro-nye?" the singer practically laid on top of him to gaze out the window, his nose wrinkled in disapproval and his breath was fogging the deeply tinted glass. Kurogane noticed he smelled strongly of vodka and strawberries. And then realized that he shouldn't know _what_ the man smelled like at all.

"Yes," he shrugged, trying his best to fight the urge to shove him to the other side of the car where he belonged. It wasn't as though he had a problem doing it on any other occasion, but he feared any sort of attention might be seen as a form on encouragement. This man's name _was_ Fai after all.

"But it's so tiny! Do you really life there with other people?"

"Just because you're a spoiled brat, it doesn't mean the rest of the world is," he snapped.

But Fai only laughed. "Can I come in?"

"No," he didn't even have to think about it.

"Why not? I gave you a ride home, didn't I?"

"Because if anyone sees you coming in, it's only going to confirm what people have been saying."

"I guess having a giant limousine parked out front right now will make them think differently?" even in the darkness his blue eyes twinkled with trouble.

Kurogane was not sure he had ever heard the word "limousine" before, but it obviously was another word for car.

"The kids are sleeping, I don't want you to wake them up."

"I can be quiet," he purred dangerously into his ear.

Kurogane was convinced the only reason for the blush in his face was because he was so completely drunk it wouldn't have mattered who had whispered things into his ear while practically sitting in his lap. Regardless of that fact, true or not, he was all too quick to brush the skinny blonde off of him and reach for the door.

"Thank you for the ride," he mumbled quickly, scrambling out of the car to finally be away from him.

He never thought he would say that he would be glad to put up with his own Fai again. He wasn't sure how much more of this new one he could handle.

Having almost fallen out the door after him, the singer gave a rather knowing smile and laughed. "I will see you soon then, Kuro-tan-mirror-san. I know where you live now!"

Before Kurogane could shout to refuse him, the car door was shut and the long black vehicle drove away, leaving Kurogane alone in the parking lot of the shabby apartment complex with a furious look on his face.

It was so late into the evening, nothing moved. Even the autumn wind seemed to have gone to bed, and he stood there, his world spinning as he tried to drive oddly disturbing images of someone he hardly knew out of his head.

Sleep would be a beautiful thing to him. If he could make his way up the stairs of course.

His hood back over his head once again, he drudged up the cracked cement stairs much slower than he normally would. They were hard to find when they were moving, for some reason. And doors with locks, he soon discovered, were about the stupidest ideas in the history of this world! How was he possibly supposed to get the thing to work if the keyhole kept jumping around?

Hunched over and trying to wrestle with the door knob, Kurogane soon found himself bathed in soft yellow light.

"Welcome home!" the same face he has just ran away practically radiated with it's usual grin and pulled the drunken ninja through the doorway, nearly causing Kurogane to lose his balance and topple right on top of him.

"How did it go!?"

"Mumfff," was about the equivalent to the response he gave as he tried to brush the other away.

"Come on! Tell me!" he seemed to bounce.

"I'll tell you in the morning. I'm going to bed," he grumbled and pushed past the skinny, far-too-awake and energetic blonde.

"Whaaaa, no fair! Kuro-pu gets to have all the fun and now he won't tell me?!" he pouted in that voice of his that would rot a persons teeth if they heard it enough; arms folded and bottom lip stuck out in an attempt to be cute.

Kurogane only twitched his eyebrow. He would never understand why Fai thought that would work. "Good night," he grumbled bitterly and stumbled down the hallway to leave Fai standing there to wonder about just what all had transpired throughout Kurogane's evening to render him that grouchy.

But Fai was not about to let him get away so easily. They were sharing a room after all…

Kurogane didn't even bother changing. He just flopped uselessly on the mass of blankets, making sure he didn't land on the kid in the process. All he wanted was to rest, to let the alcohol run its course through his body, to sleep in as long as his body (or Fai) would allow him, and just start all over.

He'd gotten his pillow in just the right spot when the door creaked open. Quiet footsteps padded across the floor; Fai seemed to be the only one would could avoid the floorboard.

"You got to see them, right?" his voice was softer than normal. Syaoran was still sleeping, after all.

Kurogane gave him some form of an agreeable grunt and turned over so he'd be facing the boy rather than the blonde who had slipped into their pile of blankets with them.

"What was it like?!"

"I learned that no matter what world you're in, you never shut the hell up," he mumbled. It was supposed to have been an insult.

Apparently Fai just found it amusing.

"Did you meet them!?" Kurogane could feel the excitement radiating off him.

He didn't feel up to regaling his story so he grumbled and pulled the blankets over his head, hoping Fai would take the hint, that as far as he was concerned, this topic was not up for further discussion.

"You DID! Didn't you!?" he giggled and in typical Fai-behavior, flopped right on top of the frustrated lump under the blankets; arms stretched out like a child begging for candy in a candy shop. "Come on Kuro-woof, don't be a bad puppy! Tell me what happened."

"I said I'll tell you in the morning!" he growled; temptation was eating away at him to just throw the skinny mage across the room.

He didn't know what had possessed him to believe that Fai was any better to be around than the singer earlier.

At least this Fai was sober, fully clothed and not purring in his ear.

Nope, this one was traipsing about barefooted in sweatpants and a t-shirt and was rolling around on top of him. Comparatively, he didn't know if one was actually better than the other. But at least Kurogane was pretty certain his Fai was not quite so self-assured as the other.

In his drunken state, he was quite certain that was a good thing.

* * *

I'm so sorry for the large delay between chapters. I promise you'll have another one in a few days! 


	6. Under Moonlight

"Just where the hell have you been?" were the first words he was greeted with. He had been hoping to sneak through the door and into bed without being noticed, but then again this was Kurogane he was dealing with. He wasn't particularly surprised.

"Just giving someone a ride home, Kuro-tan," he grinned and gave a small shrug. "Didn't I tell you?"

"No, you didn't. You just disappeared suddenly. And who the hell were you giving a ride to? What is that supposed to mean?"

Fai only shook his head and giggled, "Oh, you're so cute when you worry. But don't fret. It's a surprise, Kuro-chu."

Nothing but moonlight lit the room, but with the vast, crystal windows that encircled the sleek, penthouse apartment, moonlight was all that was needed.

"Don't try to play cute, idiot. I'm mad at you right now."

A bottom lip shot out in a pout (an obviously _fake_ pout) and Fai tossed his keys on the table and made a painfully slow line for the man sitting on the couch. He knew as well as anyone how short Kurogane's fuse was – how annoying him or making him angry was about as easy as turning on a light switch. But he was not in the mood for Kurogane to be mad at him for no good reason.

"Does Kuro-non want me to tell him where I was and spoil his surprise?"

"I don't like surprises," he glared, doing his best to keep his focus straight on Fai's face. The crisp autumn moonlight catching on his pale gold hair was not helping.

"You like _some_ surprises," he only grinned.

"No I don't."

"Oh really?" a thin blonde eyebrow raised and he couldn't help but think that had just sounded a bit like a challenge.

He smelt like vodka and strawberries, and Kurogane might not have known this if Fai had taken his seat on the couch like a normal person. But Fai had never been a normal person. And as Kurogane had come to discover years ago, he was also rather insatiable.

He kept his glare aimed straight forward; his eyes away from the blonde perched in his lap and kissing down his neck. He was supposed to be mad it him, damn it!

"What would Kurogane like for his surprise tonight?" there was hot breath on his cheek as Kurogane leaned back into the couch and willed his hands to stay put; tried to keep his breath normal.

Deep down he knew that Fai would not stop until he got his way. Part of him didn't really mind, though the other part of him wished that one day Fai could learn to take a hint. But there would be no sense in bringing that up right then. And no point in denying himself anything just to prove a point.

Yes, Fai drove him crazy almost every waking day of his life. His odd habits and strange nicknames and carefree, oblivious behavior made him want to smack him in the head if he thought about them too much. But then again, that was what made Fai, Fai. And there wasn't anyone else Kurogane would want him to be. Because crazy or not, he was _his_ Fai, and they had decided years ago that he always would be.

They had met in college. Fai had been a physics major because that was what his scholarship had been for. Kurogane had remained undecided but his parents had been paying for his schooling anyway so he hadn't felt to pressed to claim one at the time. Mostly, he skated through his classes just enough to keep him eligible for sports.

During study sessions for a kinetic science class, a handful of the students would take part in unrehearsed jamming sessions in the campus fraternity house basement if studying racked their brains a little too much. After a few months, they had unintentionally formed a band, and named it "Friction" because of their inspired rehearsals. But they were in need of a singer.

Fai was actually the third singer for the band. The first two had lasted only long enough to loose interest or become too busy in their studies. Fai on the other hand, despite being a physics major, seemed to have all the time in the world for it. Not to mention the one who possessed the most raw talent.

They practiced two nights a week in the frat house, eventually moving up from the basement by request of the residents themselves. After, "Friction" started to become a widely known name on campus the result, provided a heavy conglomeration of female students showing up to the frat house whenever a practice night rumor surfaced. And none but the neighbors of the Delta Alpha Phi could complain.

Kurogane had been living in the fraternity house since the beginning of his sophomore year. Neither he nor any of his fellow fraternity brothers were actually a part of the band itself, but because of their constant presence, they all knew one another and were on friendly terms more often than not. Before first semester was over, he knew every word to every song, every note and every tune backwards and forwards; before "Friction" ever even started to play in small venues around Tokyo. His last three girlfriends he had even met from them coming over to band practice nights at his own house.

At first, he had merely been curious. Most people were. Fai was the center of all the new found attention "Friction" was gaining, and yet remained at the top of his graduating class as a physic's major. He was friendly and flirtatious and sang songs of love, romance and sex, but Kurogane never saw him leave with any of the dozens of girls who threw themselves at him. He would chat away with anyone and yet there wasn't anyone who could say they knew anything more about him other than the obvious: that he was a smart science major with an unexpected talent for lyrics and singing. He was friendly. He was handsome. He was blonde. His name was Fai.

The other members of the band however, Kurogane knew loads about. Yasha especially, who seemed oddly determined to teach Kurogane to play the guitar under the excuse that it would "get Kurogane more chicks." To which Kurogane would raise his eyebrow and ask about how Ashura was doing.

Five months later, Kurogane splurged on a guitar of his own rather than stealing Yasha's from him when he wasn't using it. Music, if nothing else, was a good release of tension and stress from his daily life of sports, girls, studying and hangovers. He didn't know much about writing music, but he had picked up the skill of being able to play almost everything he heard, so it seemed natural that he knew most of the basic melodies to a handful of "Friction" songs.

It wasn't a deep interest. Just a hobby. Something to pass the time. Something to take his mind of the things he didn't want to think about.

He'd been coming back from the indoor swimming pool one night after a couple dozen workout laps when he caught him out of the corner of his eye.

Fai, the poor thing, as lovely as he was, found himself completely in over his head with vicious fishnet-wearing, red-lipped cheerleaders. Four of them. Even from his distance, Kurogane could see the fake smile plastered on the blonde's face as he did everything he could think of to get away from them without coming across as a shallow, insensitive jerk.

Kurogane however, did not quite have the reputation around campus as Fai did for "playing nice." And he'd also has his fair share of run-ins with the breed of girls who seemed willing to do anything for one of their notches on the bed post to be someone well-known among their fellow harpies. Kurogane didn't know him well, that was certain, but it didn't mean he was going to just leave him there.

"Hey," he approached the group with a casual nod. "You still meeting us for drinks tonight?" he had said with crimson eyes focused directly at the blonde.

Fai was obviously surprised at first, but he covered it well. "Oh, that was tonight? Thanks for reminding me Kuro-sama," he smiled as he ever did.

Kurogane just gave a shrug and mumbled, "I'm going right now if you want to ride together. We're supposed to meet them in twenty minutes."

"Oh! Ok!" he smiled, playing along, and did his best not to run away at full speed with his new found freedom. Instead, he just apologized with a smile to the ladies and followed after Kurogane as he walked away.

They didn't say anything for a while. Just walked side by side to keep the appearance that they really were going somewhere together, incase Fai's fan girls were inclined to follow.

"Harpies," Kurogane mumbled, looking back over his shoulder to see them still standing by the tree giggling and chatting.

Fai only laughed, pushing his long blonde hair out of his eyes. "That was very nice of you Kuro-sama."

The other only shrugged, giving Fai nothing more than an "it was nothing" grumble and continued walking in silence. He had never been one who was very good at small talk, and knowing so little about his companion made conversation a trifle more difficult than usual.

Silence was probably best anyway.

The house was locked and the windows dark by the time they arrived. It was still fairly early for a Friday night, so it wasn't altogether unexpected that they arrived to an empty fraternity house.

"I think they all went out for some drinks downtown if you want to join them," Kurogane said with a shrug as he unlocked the door.

"Not really," he only grinned. "What are you doing with the rest of your evening, Kuro-sama?"

"I was going to take a shower and go to bed."

"Early Saturday practice?" Fai titled his head in curiosity.

He only gave a nod.

"They say you're the best player on the team."

Kurogane only gave a shrug.

"They didn't have a Lacrosse team at my high school," Fai said sadly, "I'm afraid I don't know anything about the sport."

Guess that ruled out one subject of conversation between them.

With another silent shrug, Kurogane flicked on the light switch and tossed his athletic bag against the wall before kicking off his shoes. One day they were going to need to go through that pile by the front door and do something about it. It was at the very least a horrible mess, and quite likely a bio-hazard or health code violation. Maybe it could be a new project for the pledges or something.

"You can crash on one of the couches if you like," Kurogane offered.

"I will probably wait here a while and go back," he shook his head. "But thank you."

"You live in the dorms, right?"

Fai just smiled.

"No one will care," he insisted.

"I know," he only grinned again and slid onto one of the couches in front of the television.

He took one more sweep of the empty house before looking at him again. He wasn't sure why he felt so uncomfortable being alone with him. Why it felt like this was some sort of secret he would need to keep.

"Good night," he said with a curt nod and trodded up the stairs to the shower room, pausing at the top of the stairs to look back at him one last time.

"Good night Kuro-sama. Thank you again," Fai looked right at him and smiled.

He showered, just like he had intended. Slipped into bed early, just like he had wanted to. But unfortunately, he was wide awake.

The house was still dark when he peered out of his room. No one would be home until the bars downtown kicked them out, which usually wasn't until sunrise. And he hadn't forgotten about Fai being downstairs, but in the silence, he had simply expected that the blonde had already returned to his dormitory for the night like he said he had wanted to do.

Needless to say, he had been a little surprised to find him still on the couch, curled up in a corner, scribbling away in one of his notebooks by a single dim lamplight.

"Couldn't sleep, Kuro-tan?" he looked up with his usual smile as soon as Kurogane reached the bottom.

The other didn't quite know what to say to him. Had he really just called him Kuro-tan?

"Would you like some warm milk, or maybe some nice chamomile tea? I can make you some if you like?" he practically jumped off the couch. "They're really quite good for you to, so you'll be nice and healthy for your practice in the morning."

He was already in the kitchen digging for a kettle before Kurogane could voice his polite declination. And by the time Kurogane followed after him to actually say something, the stove was on and the kettle was being filled; it seemed quite rude to tell him anything by that point. So Kurogane just slid into one of the chairs at the table.

Not much longer, and Fai presented him with a mug full of steaming, warm milk and a smile. "Drink up, Kuro-wan," he said and slipped into the chair right across from him.

"Thanks," he shrugged and took a sip as directed. His mother used to make him warm milk on nights he couldn't sleep. He hadn't had it since before high school, so he found it rather odd that his mysterious pseudo-rock-star acquaintance was the next one to present it to him.

"So which do you like better, Kuro-sama, lacrosse or track and field?"

"I like them both," he shrugged and took another drink.

"That's silly. You have to like one better than the other."

"Not really."

"Do you like something else better then?"

"No."

Fai just giggled. Kurogane hadn't realized how long his hair had gotten. It dusted the tops of his shoulders now when he shook his head.

"Y-chan tells me that other schools call you "the dragon," because you're so good at everything. He says you practically fly sometimes, and you're so good the you just destroy the other teams. Is that what you're going to do one day, Dragon-sama? Are you going to play sports professionally?"

"I don't know yet," he shrugged after another sip. "Who the heck is Y-chan?"

"Yasha-chan, of course," he told him, obviously certain Kurogane should have already known that. "So what are you going to do then?"

"I don't know."

"Do you think about it?"

"Not really."

Fai laughed. But this time, it was a long, amused laugh. His head rolled back, his smile widened and he laughed until he gripped his sides.

Kurogane was a heartbeat away from getting up and leaving. He had no reason to stay if Fai was only going to laugh at him.

But the moment he went to place his drink on the table Fai stopped. And he looked him right in the eyes with a soft smile on his face. "I like that, Kuro-wan. I like that very much."

The raise of a single black eyebrow was enough of a question to get Fai to continue.

"Because I don't know either…."


	7. Spin

_I'm so sorry it took me so long to update this. I'll promise to try and be better._

_Please enjoy!  
_

* * *

Friction always practiced on Saturday evenings. It had become a weekly Delta Alpha Phi tradition by that time; pledges had to clear out the living room and make sure the kegs of beer were full every Saturday morning. Kurogane never had to deal with it, he was always at practice. But he had come to expect that when he returned he'd have to dodge tangled messes of electrical chords to get up the stairs. Once late afternoon arrived though, so did their fellow students. Most of them were females toting six-packs of fruity liquor, cigarettes and trendy clutch-purses filled with nothing but touch-up powder and lip gloss.

He managed to get a shower in before too many people started to show up and take up his bathroom time. But for some reason, he was not in the mood to make his way downstairs like he usually did to fraternize with the regular bunch of people he could hardly remember the names of. Something about having to watch the swarm of usual harpies that would cling all over him again, having to watch him smile and laugh and pretend again; that bothered Kurogane for reasons he couldn't explain. He'd never even thought about it before, but their brief conversation from the night before had struck him much deeper than he had been expecting it too.

"I don't know either…" Fai's laugh rang in his ears. It bothered Kurogane that he didn't know exactly what the blonde had meant by it. Did it mean that he didn't think about his future either? That he was just going along with life because it was there and not because he really truly wanted to.

Fai had fooled him. Fooled him with his twisted melodies that suggested that he had it all figured out; that he knew what he wanted in life; that he knew his wishes and desirers and was working toward them with every note he sang.

But they were only wishes. Not answers.

Kurogane was not sure why he had ever thought otherwise, but until their shared memory of hot milk and talks of empty futures, Fai had never seemed quite real to him. Just a person that passed through his life. Just that person other people talked about that existed just outside his usual radar. But Fai was downstairs just like he always was. Kurogane could hear him singing, even through the vibrations of the guitar chords that shook the walls and the chatter of several dozen college students. And he wondered, for the first time, why Fai was there at all.

Did he even want to be?

There was a rumor that one of the smaller label companies in Tokyo was considering signing them on. Their keyboardist, a young man everyone called B-chan, had even worked out that they get studio time to put together a demo CD.

Yasha didn't have time to give Kurogane guitar lessons anymore, he was too busy practicing new material and working with their base guitarist, Lantis, to come up with new melodies for Fai's lyrics.

Things were going to start getting serious for the band, and Fai just seemed to be floating along with things.

He shook his head and shut the door to his room before falling to the bed. He had studying he could be doing. Surely that was better than wasting his thoughts on a band he wasn't even a part of.

But an attempt to study was a wasted effort. Noise seemed to be crawling through the walls to dig at his ears. Wordless chatter seemed to come from all around him. The scent of cigarettes and beer. Laughter. Fai's voice.

Frustrated for no apparent reason he gave his zoology book a satisfying chuck at the wall only to grin to himself at the sound of the rattling thud as the book hit, shaking the crooked, cheap wall hangings on the entire half of the room. He didn't even know why he was taking that stupid class. What was he going to need zoology for?

What he really needed was a beer.

It was eight beers later, long after the sun had gone down and the chords and speakers had been tucked away in a corner and covered with blankets, Kurogane found himself in the living room sitting next to Yasha on the couch. Though, Yasha was paying very little attention, if any, to Kurogane at this point. Not while Ashura was perched in his lap playfully nibbling away at his ears.

Typical weekend evening at Delta Alpha Phi, that was for sure. Not a sober face in the house, and most of them were stuck together while lurking in any dark corner they could find.

"We should play a game!" one of the girls Kurogane couldn't have even guessed the name of giggled through a drag of her cigarette, a half-drained bottle of some colorfully labeled beer in her hands.

There were cheerful mummers and nods of agreement all around. Drinking games were almost always welcomed among present company.

Fai was there too, leaning against a wall almost directly across from Kurogane. He was drinking something from a red plastic cup and talking excitedly with raven-haired B-chan. Kurogane found it odd that he didn't really know what B-chan's real name was. He was the least sociable of them all. He knew Yasha plenty well – enough that Kurogane would call him a close friend. Kurogane had a few classes with their bassist, Lantis.

There was a quick, somewhat slurred conversation over what game it was they should all play. Pyramid. I Never. Kings. Quarters. Chandeliers. Twenty-one. The usual, popular drinking games.

Many rounds of Kings later, and enough beer he had actually lost count of exactly how many it had been, a few of the girls sitting on the floor were beginning to get antsy and eventually, one of them suggested a classic game to play instead – now that the boring people had left and things were getting more interesting.

Spin the Bottle.

"Leave it to Kanoe to suggest spin the bottle," someone teased. But no one seemed to object. There was a sufficient collection of bottles laying about, after all.

Everyone was laughing, giggling, snuggling up next to each other as the occupants of the room formed an acceptable circle. Fai, however, looked rather uncomfortable. He stayed against his wall, slowly sipping at what had to have been his fifth of sixth cup of whatever it was he was drinking, and looking to B-chan with those sky blue eyes of his as his only hope of saving him.

But it was too late.

"C'mon Fai-chan!" Miyuki giggled, jumping to her feet and latching on top his arm. "You're playing too right!?"

It wasn't long until Fai was pulled down to the ground and sitting cross-legged on the floor among everyone else, a typical, bright smile on his face. Kurogane wondered if anyone else had the slightest idea it was completely fake. But Kurogane couldn't blame him much. He'd have edged out of the room if he thought he could actually stand. He'd been sitting there on the couch all night slamming down one beer after the next. Walking was not going to be an option for him, so he opted to just sit on the couch and keep his dull, uninterested expression on his face as long as possible. If he was lucky, they wouldn't even notice and would skip right over him. There were plenty of people in the room after all; most of them female. Plenty of other distractions for the attention to remain off of him. Personally, he'd rather go back to playing Kings.

The first spin was Souma's. Three times around it went before landing on Eagle. They both laughed, leaned across the table and hastily kissed one another before sitting back down.

Kurogane yawned, crossed his arms and sunk back into the couch, hoping the bottle on the table wouldn't betray him.

Boring. Boring. Boring.

As always, as the game progressed, people got more daring. It had been a while since any of them had played the game, but with the mixture of alcohol and raging hormones, it was always inevitable. Kisses were longer, deeper while the others could applaud and holler in approval. It was just a silly, pointless game to show off and get a rise out of people. But the kiss between Satsuki and Fuu was especially well-received.

Kurogane found the clock on the wall more entertaining though, it was just a pointless party game. In the morning, none of those kisses would mean anything. Most of them wouldn't even be remembered.

He hadn't expected the room to go silent though. Perhaps he should have been paying closer attention – at least he could have been more prepared for it. But it was only moments before he realized that everyone in the room was staring at him. He glanced around quickly, wondering what he had missed only to discover the tip of an empty blue beer bottle pointed straight for him.

"Stupid bottle," he wanted to say.

Yasha jabbed him in the side with his elbow, "Rules are rules Kurogane. You're in the circle. You have to kiss him."

Him?

A handful of girls were silent and staring at him with wide eyes and the biggest, hungriest grins he had ever seen in his life. It was mortifying. And it wasn't until then that he realized had had no idea whose turn it had been.

"Y-you don't have to," a soft, smooth voice came. A familiar voice. Fai's voice. And his eyes were noticeably wider than normal. Probably scared out of his head.

"Yes he does. Everyone else had been playing by the rules. You kiss who the bottle lands on or you don't play at all," Yasha shook his head and laughed, giving Kurogane another jab with his elbow.

It was probably not the best time to tell them all that he hadn't wanted to play to begin with. He really didn't care about the fact that he'd come off sounding like a jerk if he said so either. But he was sitting there. He could have spoken up before they started; he'd probably have even been able to keep his seat on the couch and watch.

"Whatever," he grumbled and pushed himself away from the couch, ready to just get this over and done with. It was just a stupid kiss, and no one was going to expect a show from them, and then he could go back to staring at the clock on the wall.

Fai was on the opposite side of the table, almost directly across from him, kneeling on the floor. His eyes were so blue…

"You really don't have to," Fai almost whispered at they looked at one another from across the short, ring-stained coffee table.

"Rules are rules," Kurogane shrugged. He would never hear the end of it if he didn't go through with it now. Everyone else followed the rules, they'd call him a chicken for not doing it – even if Fai was another guy. That was part of the fun of the game now, after all: you never knew who you were going to have to kiss.

Blue eyes fell to the table for a moment, even though Fai hadn't meant for them to. He hoped that Kurogane hadn't noticed.

But he had.

And that made Kurogane all the more curious: why the blue eyed vocalist been washed over with a half-moment of sadness.

He could hear whispers and hushed giggles as he leaned across the table to meet the blonde.

Lips met for a brief moment. Warm. Chaste. Soft. But Kurogane blamed the alcohol entirely for their return. Or perhaps his pride kicking in to say that couldn't have even qualified as a kiss.

He must have been drinking vodka mixed with some sort of fruity flavor. Cherry. Strawberry. Watermelon. Something red, sweet and juicy, that was for certain. Kurogane could taste it on him as he licked along Fai's soft bottom lip. He was far softer, far sweeter than he had been expecting. Not that he had thought about it before hand. And then he realized that he probably shouldn't even be thinking about it at all.

He pulled away, trying to keep his face adjusted to its usual, nonchalant, stoic gaze but couldn't help but notice the blonde's eyes flutter open as he slipped back onto the couch. He didn't even hear the clapping and the whistles of approval, the girls in one corner giggling like mad.

The rest of the game went on, unremarkably unremembered in Kurogane's mind. The clock on the wall kept him some fine company until the crowd dissipated and the sun began to rise and he could stumble back up to his room in relative peace and quiet. A quick, vague thought of having lost track of Fai around the time everyone else was leaving came and passed as Kurogane shut his eyes and fell asleep.


End file.
